Moving from Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce to the One Thousand Trades Group
The One Thousand Trades Group (OTTG) has appointed a new head of business development and commercial.
David Woakes joins the Birmingham-based enterprise group from the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, where he was head of commercial development.
“I’m thrilled to join the OTTG at this exciting time in its journey and in the journeys of the companies in the group,” said David, who has spent most of his career in increasingly senior business roles.
‘Taking advantage of the unique economic landscape in this region’
“Across the West Midlands right now, we have unprecedented levels of innovation and opportunity, particularly in the life sciences, defence, advanced manufacturing and tech sectors.
“The One Thousand Trades Group has specific expertise in each of these areas and so is well-placed to help businesses grow by taking advantage of the unique economic landscape in this region.”
Drawing on more than 20 years of experience, David’s brief is to grow commercial relationships and revenue within Starting Point Recruitment, the multi-sector jobs agency based in Walsall and Birmingham, as well as across each of the companies in the OTTG:
- Life Sciences Week, the annual health tech conference
- Technology Supply Chain, the 5,500-member tech industry network
- Walks Through Walls, an integrated communications agency
- West Midlands News, the region’s start-up news website
- Innovation Awards, the annual tech industry awards programme
- Turtle Media, SEO and web development specialist
- One Thousand Trades Group Events, the event management company.
‘Continuing to build momentum across all the companies in the group’
Professor Paul Cadman, CEO of the OTTG, said: “I’m really pleased to welcome David into the team. His commercial acumen and contact book will be a great asset to our collective skillset as we continue to build momentum across all the companies in the group.
“We offer services including marketing, recruitment, events and PR, working with clients across the UK to support business growth and unlock potential. It’s an exciting time to be joining a growing organisation with such a strong reputation.”
